We need to talk about poverty
There seem to be more instances of poverty and antisocial behaviour near Puke Ariki library. Until recently I couldn’t eat my lunch there because of the blaring classical music (played to dissuade juvenile delinquents from congregating there).
There is a high-profile squatter in Ha¯ wera’s CBD who is accumulating more and more chattels each week. There seems to be a lot of tolerance, and even aroha, towards him. However, his existence hardly resonates with the South Taranaki District Council’s commitment to spend close to $13 million to revitalise the town’s CBD.
New Zealand prides itself on being a fair and compassionate society. This caring ethos dates back to Richard Seddon’s ‘‘God’s Own Country’’ (1891) and Labour’s (1938) ‘‘Cradle to the Grave’’ social security system, the envy of the world.
Fortunately, the homeless problem in Taranaki is moderate compared to Auckland and Wellington (and the inequality of America). But things will only get worse because of the chronic lack of funding in the mental health sector and an increasingly tight rental market. There needs to be an ongoing community discussion on this fraught and very complex problem.
New Plymouth
Take, for example, his recent lament over the impending energy crisis in Taranaki; precipitated by thoughtless preference for long-term survival of the species over short-term foreign oil interests on the part of a government hell-bent on making a better life for all Kiwis.
He fails to understand that the best strategy for dealing with child-like mentalities is a policy of distraction, not simply denial.
In this case it means promoting thorium-based nuclear energy. The development of container-sized reactor modules could meet all national power needs into the future. Thorium is globally abundant; the reactors are many times more efficient than current conventional designs using uranium. They cannot explode, melt down or be used to make weapons. The manufacturing requirements are well within the capabilities of local industry. Alas, I fear the ‘‘think small, think yesterday’’ attitudes championed by Taylor and his ilk doom such innovation to the drawing board.
New Plymouth the Bible verse is definitely not due to lack of space, as we now have yet another puzzle, the Telegraph crossword. This to me, Sir, sounds more like Fairfax taking a stand against Christianity, washing its hands, as did Pontius Pilate.
We now have a manageablesize newspaper which some like and others will accustom to, but it appears readers’ preferences regarding content are not taken into consideration.
Hawera One of the ideas in the draft council long-term plan is that smallholders should pay proportionately more rates than they currently do.
According to the mayor and councillors, this small group of approximately 1600 ratepayers who live on a lifestyle block or farmlet with an area of between one and four hectares are not paying their fair share of rates.
They propose that we should face an average rate increase of 44 to 50 per cent over the next three years, and that the extra revenue be used to keep rates lower for the commercial sector (retailers, hotels etc).
The council is hoping, no doubt, that smallholders won’t notice or complain, and that many will find the process to voice any opposition daunting.
As a smallholder myself, I disagree with the assumption that somehow I am freeloading off the commercial sector and that I don’t contribute enough to the services of this district.
I have created an online survey to allow other smallholders to describe their views on the rating proposal.
The link is https:/ /www.surveymonkey.com/ r/LTPrates.
Please participate whether you agree with the proposal or not, and share the link with people in the same situation. The results will be presented to the councillors and mayor when they hold their public submissions in June.